Eyes of the Storm
by Depp's-Still-Doll
Summary: Elsa is finally free and can finally see what she can do with her ice powers, but even miles away, she's still haunted.


After watching the sun climb the mountainous horizon, Elsa closed the doors with a sigh of relief, simultaneously shutting out the rest of the world. "This is more like it! No more fear, no more hiding. It's just me."

With a flick of her wrist, a snowflake patterned frame emerged from the wall beside her. She gazed at her reflection in the ice for the first time after her transformation. The ice crystals in her skin tingled pleasantly, like the thrum of electricity, a power in her veins. The snowflakes in her braid twinkled a "hello." Elsa's bold lips curved into a smirk as she admired the locks of freed blond hair framing her pale face and the cold, shimmering dress that hugged her curves perfectly. For once in her life, she felt beautiful, powerful, free.

Then she noticed her eyes. They were the same vibrant summer sea blue as Anna's. Elsa's eyes widened and her brow creased. The castle took on a reddish hue. She clutched her heart with one hand, unable to tear her gaze from the reflective wall before her. It felt as though an icicle pierced her chest. Memories of Anna resurfaced in her mind as her reflection seemed to momentarily shift into her sister.

It took her a moment to realize the ice below her feet was trembling. Elsa looked down and panicked. Holding her hands up in a shielding motion as if the crystal mirror might attack her, the frame became one with the walls smooth surface at her unvoiced command. Snow swirled throughout the palace, heightening her fear.

"Conceal, don't feel," Elsa chanted, trying to quell the raging storm inside her heart. Anna was far away, safe, probably in the arms of her "true love," Hans. She couldn't be hurt. When her thoughts did nothing to ease the blizzard, she sprinted across the room and down the stairs, keeping her head low and eyes closed tight.

As Elsa reached the bottom of the staircase, she slammed face first into something hard and cold. She toppled backwards onto the steps, lifted her gaze and screamed, despite all her efforts to hold it in. Standing before her was an ice statue of her sister who appeared frightened, yet reaching out for something.

"No!" Elsa cried, sprawled on the stairs. She tried to stand, slipping multiple times in the process. "I didn't do this," she reasoned aloud. "She's not even here. She's safe. I couldn't! I could never hurt her."

As Elsa said it, the image of her icy blast hitting Anna all those years ago flashed through her mind. Even in that moment, she had been trying to save her from a dangerous fall. How could she say she couldn't hurt Anna? No matter her intentions, all she could do was destroy everything and hurt her sister. Deep down inside, Elsa knew it was true. She was a monster, a freak of nature, and uncontrollable force that couldn't be stopped. That was why she didn't complain when her parents locked her in her room. She agreed that she needed to be locked away in order for everyone else to be safe.

Elsa collapsed on her knees and cried. Abandoning all her queenly dispositions over the past fifteen minutes left her and her ice castle unstable. "It's not really her…not real…conceal, don't feel…"

Once Elsa let out all of the emotions that she had been holding in since she and her family had visited those strange trolls, the snow ceased its fall and her fortress no longer shook. She looked up to see that the frozen Anna was gone, banished into the ice floor without leaving a trace.

Elsa breathed a sigh of relief, rose, and wiped away the tears that were already beginning to crystallize. She was calm again. She had finally and truly let go of all the fear and regret that had consumed her fo so many years.

Elsa exhaled another frosty huff and ran her hands through her hair. The pain in Elsa's heart was replaced with an icy numbness as she rebuilt her emotional walls. Luckily enough, her frozen fortress had survived the storm and returned to its beautiful cool blue. She ascended the staircase with her usual grace, affirming that she had officially removed herself from her old life. Anna was safe.

Elsa reached the top of the stairs with a broad smile, but a timid knock sent her jaw crashing to the floor.


End file.
